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Lesson 5 - from Thomas Hanna’s ‘Outgrowing the Myth of Aging Series- the Cat Stretch’
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What is Lesson 5, (from the ‘Cat Stretch’ series)?
How does one do this particular movement/somatic excercise?
Well i posted a link in previous post ( on this very thread)to another thread on knees and what i post there endeavours to answer these questions above.
You’ll find a u-tube video which is alright & gives you a ROUGH idea, though i blieve it may not be enough to go on as i believe you -
A) need to understand the theory so you know why, i.e the reason, why you are doing what you are doing.( homas hanna says this very thing in his book [I][B]Somatics: Re-awakening the Mind’s Control of Movement, Flexibility and Health[/B][/I][I]s[/I], which you’ll want to get a hold of.no abtruse theroies to master- one just needs to understand that the muscular sytem can be changed through the nervous system/brain)
B)Be familiar with the principiples of practice, and therefore importantly develop a ‘feel’ for doing somatic excercises effectively to release muscular tension.Knowing how to do SE’s, and having experienced that for oneself already.
This particular u-tube video helped me with lesson 5 as it is performed there sliding the foot in a lazy fashion. (rather than raising it, which in my case, did’nt result in a drop in muscle tonus, perhaps spasm, as my legs were too tight.( You can then raise the foot/leg after sliding it, once the legs ease off)
But i had lready consulted this book above,the manual if you like, and audio instruction too.The book provides one with a picture, if you can decipher the positions of wooden doll used to illustrate.And the complementary audioiinstruction gives you guidance on what you should be sensing and feeling as you do the movements.They invite you to first imagine and then do the movments as there is a lot to take in at first.
But you should notice changes straight away, immediately, after doing session, especially in your “core” region, (betwen ribcage & pelvis) ,even after doing one lesson( that is what Hanna called them, cos you need to learn how to do them,effectively. it is basically a form of biofeedback muscle-brain-muscle-brain training but without any equipment needed… just a rug or firm surface with enough room to lie on, usually on your back. you basically work without the usual effects of gravity pulling you down, usually causing one to tilt this way or that way, front back or to the sides, perhpas all three ways at once.)
It can be used for functional body enhancement, like for athletes also , through bringing about better alignement and coordination via the release of reflexively, that is involuntarily, tight muscles.
If anyone here is prepared todo anything then i suggest you give HS a go.
Or if you want quicker Results than learning on your own, go through a trained practitioner ( the licensed ones all do 3 years of training so they must have learnt something or acheived a certain skill level, let’s say)
Here is the website to look for a trained practitioner living near you-
http://www.hannasomatics.com/practitioners/index.php
I’ve only been learning Hanna Somatics for 9 months, and still trying to undo obvious tensions in my body.I’m doing HS/somatic excercises instead of asana(this was my route , how i got into the mind-body field) as i’ve found yogasana, when i do it, would appear to be conditioning my muscles into higher state of tension than they already are( it maybe because i’m not breathing, period, or properly during asana but that is obviously another subject entirely, in and of itself)
Click on the link to other knee thread in previous post where you’ll find -
-additional guiance on this particular excercise and how to do it
and
other stuff you’ll profit from by knowing ( Knowledge is, indeed, power.)
here is that link again to other thread just to make things as easy as possible and clearhttp://www.yogaforums.com/forums/f18/pain-in-knees-recent-3937.html
But you really need to try this out. HS
Order some guided audio instruction. Try it out. then report back here with an experience or question ( it’d be good to have someone to bounce off with on this one).It’s worth the time it takes to learn.Though i definitely welcome questions even if you have’nt tried this out.Any thoughts on it i find interesting.
Okay…
you in the back row- only kidding.
It’s a bit like asana, once you are familar with the movement, you can then do without the guide/book/audio instruction but first have to do it a few times until you get a handle on the moevement, or asana beofre you push the crutches away completely. Actually i found somatic excercises alot harder to do or learn than asanas, in terms of concentration, at first. Some of the positions can feel abit wierd and do require you to rtreally concentrate on what you are doing.That may well be because the movements are foreign ( and i’ve come from doing yaga asana practice though i’ve heard others express likewise) It’s not like gym traininig ,where you just go through the motions- you dohave to concentrate and still the brain- i think an alpha state may well be connducive.
Hope this helps .
